Bright Nails &amp; Spa

Where do we start with this establishment? I've been coming here for about 15yrs..I was in my mid…read more20's when I was introduced to Cindy & Alex. When I first started coming here, they were very nice. They use to put a lot of effort into their work, The passion was there. However, over the years the quality of service has gotten worst with each passing year. First of all the shop is "Matchbox" size and can hold about 20 people including workers, you would think all the millions she's made there over the years she would have upgraded her space, cause the prices surely have inflated over the years. I use to spend $125 bi-weekly for a full set, pedi, eyebrows and lashes! Now the prices aren't even posted, YOU PAY WHAT THEY SAY! The gel selection is POOR & LIMITED, the "By appt" techs are sloppy and money hungry(Randy cut me twice) Did you know you can get an infection from being cut while being rushed out the chair for the NEXT PAYING CUSTOMER!?? ...But that's the shop as a collective and for the water down gel you slinging, y'all should be a bit nicer(In your profession & manners) There's no amount of wall paper or air freshener that will cover up this scam of a business. Cindy and Alex were a staple in the community, however they are TOO comfortable with mediocrity for me! I'm gonna take my coin downtown for a RUSSIAN manicure, where they cut your cuticles because it's part of the service. Don't EVER think you getting your cuticles cut(UNLESS ITS A PEDICURE) or a massage here!! NOPE! They would NEVER!!! Dishwashing liquid for bubbles, wild cuticles and stomped on GEL... this is not the 80's!! We want our gel PURE.. lol If this was 2001, I would probably recommended this business, but it's 2023..and I wouldn't refer them to my worst enemy! Customer service is key in any thriving business. Avenue Nails on Lexington Ave is lacking in that department. Invest in some NEW GEL ALREADY! Invest in a spot that can hold all 50 of us when you in there being careless and rude! That's the least you could do after all these years. You gonna lose all of your good paying customers soon enough Ms..waited 20yrs to put a credit card machine in the place cause you wanted to avoid taxes!! We're sick of your BAD SERVICE...and I'm so grateful for places like Yelp & TikTok where customers can let others know where NOT to spend our hard earned coin. 0 STARS for me! All good things must come to an end and this is the end for me! FYI.. Top Nails right across the street has plenty of room, a larger gel selection and they cut and massage & it's spotless! Go figure!!!!

2nd UPDATE - Aug:: Totally forgot review/left it alone. But a month later the owner left me a very…read morerude message saying that I should blame myself. Though I didn't see them thoroughly clean or sanitize anything between customers they simultaneously worked on in that dirty salon. She didn't even apologize for the bad customer service, the state of the place, the length of time it took for basic full set or overcharging for basic services they didn't correctly do. Not deleting this review now. Dear owner, deleted your message and blocked you... good luck sis, stay blessed. UPDATE:: took off my nail and got a freaking fungus infection..... don't go to this dirty salon!!!!!!!!!! First off. It took two hours to get my nails done today. Walked in at 10:30 walked out at 12:30!!!??? Ridiculous. At first told the wait was 15 minutes. But then they take other clients while they do your nails. The place isn't that clean and they charge for dumb things. I paid $10 for nail removal when they did nothing but soak them and I took them off myself. So I basically walked out paying almost $50 for very basic full set acrylics. To add to it the process was so long even after I explained I'll leave with a half job so I could make it to my plane on time.

My daughter loves her natural coffin shaped gel nails.

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Oct. 12th still in tack

Sathi Nails N Spa

4.1(73 reviews)

So I've been to Sathi several times for pedis, gel/dip manis over the past few years. They usually…read moredo a decent job. However, my most recent visit was not pleasant. I had an appt for 6pm. I got there at 5:45pm for a dip mani and only got someone to soak / remove my previous dip at 630pm. That already had me a bit annoyed because if they knew they'd be overbooked why have that time available ? The lady who did my nails Carmen really didn't seem to know what she was doing with the dip. She kept over applying it and it started to look gunky and uneven. She had to redo a couple nails a few times and she got the powder all over my fingertips and hands. When she finally buffed it out and finished, the color was completely uneven from how much she buffed that it looked splotchy. She also was using a very gloopy bonding agent (making the nails bumpy) and the final coat was diluted so it was not shiny at all. They don't have many options for dip colors so not really sure they're investing in that service much. To top it off she finished at almost 8pm!!! I was not expecting to be there for over 2 hours. I was really upset by the service and had to get them redone at my usual salon a few days later. I don't think I'll be back

small, affordable nail salon with quick service. my boyfriend and I went around 15 min early to our…read moreappointment, but they quickly seated us and got to work on our pedicures! their tools were very clean and the shop itself was cute. they used great exfoliating soap and massages our feet very well. for $28, this was a steal and I would come back.

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Hard gel overlay!

Sofia Nail Salon

3.3(36 reviews)

Love this place! The ladies are awesome and the prices are reasonable. I definitely recommend…read morethis spot over other nails salons in east harlem.

This place it sucks. The girl that does the acrylic nails seems like a newbie. My nails look like I…read morewent to a free for all spot where I didn't pay for my service. I don't recommend this place at all go somewhere else save your money

Reference photo

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This nail is kinda saved

Envy Nails

2.1(30 reviews)

0.4 mi•East Harlem

I decided to go back after observing one of the other workers,that were sitting next to me. Taking…read morea glass of work I saw how good she was and decided to give her a chance, I'm glad I did because she was phenomenal. Ursa did an amazing job!

I very rarely get my nails done but since I didn't have time to do it myself I decided to treat…read moremyself. This place is on the 2nd floor so you need to go up some steep stairs, once inside, it's a pretty simple yet spacious room. I asked for a regular mani pedi and they told me it was $40, cash only. The person who worked on my nails was very nice, I thought she did a good job at cleaning up my cuticles and scrubbing my feet. I picked 2 different colors for my hands and feet. I thought she did a good job overall but maybe the quality of the regular nail polish is pretty bad because even after I waited quite a while for my nails to dry they still smudged. The polish on my hands has bubbles and just looks very messy once you look at them up close. It seems like most people come here for gel or acrylic so they don't really put much thought into regular polish. I'm giving them 3 stars because the girl was very nice and she did a good job but clearly the polish looks bad. After spending $40, I feel like I could have done my nails myself.

Index finger longer than rest and super bulky rhinestones, horrible job!!

Hands down amazing!

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Look at the unevenness of these nails and look at these rhinestones I can't believe how horrible it looks.

Adore Nailz

5.0(2 reviews)

0.6 mi•East Harlem

Florence was really kind and professional, positive vibes all around . I had a great time getting…read moremy nails done with her and I will be returning! :) I asked for a design I saw on Instagram and she delivered She is also so funny at one point I almost cried tears of laughter I enjoyed our conversations and love my nails thank you Florence! (I am not the best at hand modeling but they look real nice )

Flo is the women who does the nails here and she is bomb. She is such a vibe. Her nails are really…read morenice and she is professional and accommodating, I will never go anywhere else.

Freestyle nails with builder gel.

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Apsara Nails

3.7(20 reviews)

0.5 mi•East Harlem

Loved this refill! :) jammed to music and enjoyed a calm afternoon at apsara loved these thank youread more

I usually come here bc there are cheap but my nails look really bad after taking them offread more

Blue porcelain nails

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Blue porcelain nails

C.A. Nail Salon

3.1(7 reviews)

0.4 mi•East Harlem

•$

I initially really enjoyed my nails. I got an acrylic french tip. However, I noticed after three…read moredays that my nails were lifting. I got them done for a wedding, so I wasn't doing anything strenuous that would cause them to lift. I called the salon when I came back from vacation (less than a week) and they were only offering to take off $20. When asked how does that make sense, the person on the phone indicated that people get fill ins at the one week mark so this was normal. I just paid over $100 for this set, and it didn't even last a week. Won't be returning.

I chose to come here cause I saw another review and I liked the nails, I went to Wendy like…read morerecommend and she is very lovely, I showed her what I wanted and she did exactly that. I would come here againnnn I only paid $53 She used a pink acrylic powder and gel nail polish to make the lines and for top coat

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Fierce Spa

3.0(103 reviews)

0.5 mi•East Harlem

Came here for a last minute mani/pedi since my normal nail spot was closed for renovations. I had…read moreheard good things about this nail shop so I thought I'd give it a try. Let's start with the positives. Pros: The inside was really cute and well decorated. The woman who did my toes did a great job and I feel like I was able to communicate well. Also, they have a wide range of colors. They stay open later than most nail shops in the area. Cons: my nails chipped after 2 days!! I got SNS dip powder nails that usually last 3 weeks (when I get them done elsewhere). But when I got them done here, they didn't have the SNS dip powder top coat. So they had to use gel top coat. I told her that that wouldn't work and that she should have told me before that she didn't have the right top coat. But there wasn't much else she could do. And just as I predicted, my nails chipped. They started chipping after about 2 or 3 days with the most basic activity involving my hands. Second con, the price. I paid almost $100 for a regular pedicure and a dip powder manicure. And two acrylic toenails. Overall, I probably wouldn't go here again. But they did do a decent job on my pedicure. ‍

I came here five years ago and service and nails were basura but TODAY I had to come back to give…read moremy praises to Michelle. I came in to get two nails fixed from a different salon. They didn't have my color but she spent like 15 min to customize a color and match my other nails. It came out perfect! She was also very sweet and technique was 10/10. Michelle you are a GEM

Gel manicure

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Top Nail & Spa

2.7(53 reviews)

I always come here to get a mani and pedi. Their wait time is reasonable. My nails last a month…read more Very nice and interesting environment. The workers are nice.

I used to come here when it was managed by Gracie and they used to provide good service! This place…read moreis horrible now the woman in the third chair messed up my nails and proceeded to over charge me! I then told her because she changed the price after telling me one price I will not be tipping! She was extremely disrespectful and her coworker proceeded to disrespect me as a customer! They have prices posted but tell customer those are old prices but never post the new prices! They are extremely rude to their clientele that are people of color! I would never recommend this place and believe that it should be boycotted!

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Messy

Lulu Lavender Nail Boutique

3.6(34 reviews)

0.6 mi•East Harlem

•$$$

Came here for a soak off, as I needed to have bare nails for surgery, and they completely destroyed…read moremy natural nails! Please, please avoid!!!

DO NOT GO TO THIS PLACE. They're shady and try to scam you from the moment you walk in. I walked in…read moreasking for a gel mani and pedi, and the front desk told me no problem. I walked in because they had a "walk-in customer" promo for $79. Awesome deal. The top of the sign says 10% discount for hospital employees as well. The bottom of the sign says the 10% discount is separate from the promos. The whole time, I had to tell the tech Evelyn to cut my nails to be the same size. I kept having to show her that they're uneven. Another customer also almost walked out because they were trying to scam her in paying for something she didn't want. She had an appointment, and they were giving her trouble. I know the interior looks super clean and fancy, but STAY AWAY. When I go to pay, they told me the promo doesn't apply to me. I'm like, OK I don't have my ID so that's fine. I do need the 10%. But they wouldn't give me the $79 either saying I'm not an employee. Even though the sign clearly says the 10% hospital employee discount is SEPARATE from the daily promos. I get that it's a new place, so they're trying to make money. But overcharging me FORTY dollars more than what I was suppose to pay is ridiculous. I also asked if they can put a little tip on my big toe because I broke my toe nail a few months back, and it didn't grow back. I was told it's an EXTRA TWENTY DOLLARS for one tip. And then she proceeded to laugh under her mask as if I'm asking an unreasonable question if it's one tip. Just do not go here. They treat you like you can't read, and it's just not worth it. Support a small business that actually treats customers fairly. In the hour I was there, two customers complained about something. I should have walked out because it was a major red flag. If I could give zero stars, I absolutely would. 04/26/2025 - following up on my review: Christine, the owner of the salon, reached out to me via messages on this app and said she will refund me the difference because her signage was misleading. I waited, and nothing changed on my bank statement. I proceeded to dispute the charge, as she said she would refund me and never did. She disputed my dispute and never refunded me the promised difference. I know this salon has been in the area for years, but the customer service is just atrocious. I am making my experience known because I refuse to be lied to as a customer after paying so much for a simple white manicure and pedicure. Again, if I could post 0 stars, I would.